twelve months

In Ri's twelfth month of life, she really did some growing. Her attitude just came alive- she will let you know when she doesn't like that you took something away that she wanted (which is usually your iPhone or coming in from outside. Mid-September she decided she wanted to try and feed herself with her fork (still a ways to go on perfecting it, but nonetheless), she will say a good many words on command (Tay Tay, Abbey, Copper, LiLi, GiGi, ball, blue) and says "Hey" to everyone and waves everywhere she goes. I noticed one day that she was doing something with her fingers while sitting in her highchair. I looked it up and she was signing "more." It was awesome. I had tried for a while to get her to use it and it didn't seem to click. I know they have been working on it at school so I guess it finally did!
Ri love love loves to do what Mommy and Daddy do- especially brush her teeth! She will also use her brush to try and comb Mommy's hair, and she will try and put blush on my face when she sits on the floor next to me while I do my makeup.
She is in to pushing the cart at the store, as well as her stroller. It is a royal pain in the ass to allow her to do it since she still isn't walking. So you have to hold her while she "pushes," which in turn wears you out. The best bet is to wear the baby bjorn and let her push. Which is what we did on our first family trip to the zoo this month! She liked watching the monkeys and called the giraffes "Cop Cop" but other than that, just wanted to push the stroller.
She can definitely walk, but is still too fearful to go more than a few steps on her own. She is getting tired of using her hands though so we are currently upright, walking on our knees.

Mommy taught me to put my arms in the air and say "Touchdown" but I like to just clap at everything.

Such a big girl all of a sudden!

Some things I don't want to forget:

--Ri will twirl my hair when we rock at night, while she lies in my arms and drinks her milk. She will make little cooing noises and babble a bit to try and keep herself from nodding off. 

--Ri is the best snuggler/hugger ever. She wraps her arms around your neck, puts her head on your shoulder and will pat your back (I guess I have subconsciously done that to her).
--Ri loves to say Mumm-uh, wait for you to say "Rilynn" and she will say Mumm-uh again, over and over. If we are in the car with Daddy, she will go back and forth between the two of us. 

rolling over both ways – 5 months
sleeping through the night – 3.5 months (sleep trained)
first tooth – 1st two in 1st week of being 8 months
sitting up – 6 months
getting to a sitting position on her own and staying there – 7 months
belly crawling – 6 months
real crawling – 6 months (one day shy of 7 months)
standing – 7 months
cruising – 8 months
first word – 7 months (Da-Da)
waving bye bye- 7 months
first steps – 10 months
walking – 12 months

my girl with the tude... and life lately

Ri started walking during her 1st birthday party. Cliche, I know, but it is true. She was so tired and ill tempered that she forgot to pay attention to the fact that she was walking around whining, and just kept going. Life has not slowed down since. Seriously, it is like as soon as she hit one, this independence surfaced in the form of stubbornness, whining, disobedience and hyperness. Sometimes I just stare at her like a deer in headlights thinking, 'my God, what happened to my sweet angel? Where did she go?!'
I know she is just practicing her new found skills and all, but seriously, pitching a fit when she is not allowed to push our cart, much less some other stranger's cart, at EVERY store? I have already tried "time out" and got laughed at. I popped her hand and got laughed at. I need parenting classes.
But on the much lighter side of it all, my babe is still the most fun and spunky child. She is alarmingly attentive to what you say. Like, keep-my-mouth-shut-because-she-WILL-repeat-it scary. Here are the words we are saying as of almost 13 months:

Dada
Momma
Buh Bye
Hi
Ball
Guhl (girl)
Kiki (kiwi)
CopCop (our dog, copper)
Abbey (which sounds just like when she tries to say Apple and Happy)
Ka Ka Ka (very loudly- is her saying Quack Quack when she sees a duck)
Pumpk (pumpkin)

Other developmental milestones:
Ask her where certain people are in pictures and she will point to them.
She waves buh bye to people and will blow them a kiss. If someone goes by on a bicycle or in a car, she waves and says "buh bye".
Ri will get in your face, squinch up her nose and shake her head side to side to give you an Eskimo kiss like I always give her.
She loves for you to act like you are going to get her and chase her around the house.
Her favorite things: Copper, puffs, blueberries, her wagon, pushing her stroller/grocery cart, pictures, the remote control, car keys and the iphone.
She loves to get Copper's ball and give it to him. We are working on the throw. 
She loves to sit in her little chair with one of her babies and her blanket for "snuggletime"

We are entering into the month of November and thoroughly enjoyed October's changing of the leaves, welcoming brisk in the air, Pumpkin Spice Lattes and pulling out my boots. The Pumpkin Patch with the kiddos was a new event for both of us, and Halloween was an evening of playtime in costume (not for us, but for the children, of course).
I am already gearing up my Christmas gift list in my head, bound and determined to get great gifts for everyone, while not going broke, AND be finished at least a week before Christmas. Is it doable? We shall see. Luckily, Ri still has a thousand toys from her birthday that she hasn't even noticed yet so they may get re-wrapped under the tree before that excuse is null and void. But I will save all of that goodness for another post.

Here are some captures of life in October!

Chillin in the shirt she made at school. Her first art project to bring home to Mommy. 

Taking a wagon ride with her buddy, Evan, during the Auburn halftime show.

Snuggling with her god-mommy!

In our matching Auburn tees! Cracks me up, she looks like a boy here. Grow, hair, grow!!

Failed attempt at a kiddo pic

The whole gang! Very blessed that all of us get to watch our kids grow up together.

Our little rascals.

My punkin. 

My Tom Jones Pottery Jack O' Lanterns collection is slowly but surely growing larger. I get excited every year when it is time to pull them out of storage!

I also got a much needed girls night out in October for my friend's bachelorette/lingerie evening. We all had a blast but definitely knew the next morning why we don't do it more often...

And last but absolutely not least, my little owl in her Halloween costume.